Franken suggests review of 1,585 absentee ballots

[RamboLiberal]

Source: Minneapolis Star-Tribune

ST. PAUL, Minn. - Democratic Senate candidate Al Franken has told a Minnesota court he would agree to the opening and possible counting of almost 1,600 still-sealed absentee ballots.

In a Saturday filing, Franken's lawyers submitted a list of absentee voters whose rejected ballots they want to give another look. About half the voter names also appear on a longer list compiled by Republican Norm Coleman. The rest are distinct from the Coleman roster.

Coleman is suing to overturn the results of a statewide recount that had Franken ahead by 225 votes. He has argued that thousands of absentee ballots were wrongly rejected by poll workers and should count.

Coleman campaign spokesman Mark Drake said Franken's list is weighted toward ballots that favor him. "The time has come for all the valid votes of Minnesotans to count, not just the ones that favor one candidate over another," Drake said.



Read more: http://www.startribune.com/local/40030667.html?elr=KArksLckD8EQDUoaEyqyP4O:DW3ckUiD3aPc:_Yyc:aUac8HEaDiaMDCinchO7DU

[robinlynne]

1. POll workers do not decide which absentee ballots are counted.

The Registrar of Voters does.
Maybe Franken still needs to take elections 101.

[w4rma]

2. I know Franken's team of lawyers know election law much better than you think you do.

At this point they are probably the top experts on election law in the nation.

[jcv1]

3. One case to remember

Bush v. Gore - Gore's mistake was his request to limit the recount. Franken's argument is to expand it...

[Winterblues]

22. Gore had to follow Florida Law which stated ONLY the contested counties could be recounted.

It was not Gore's mistake, it was because the LAW was not told to the general public.

[robinlynne]

13. really? interesting.

[Mnpaul]

11. I guess then none of them should be counted

because Minnesota doesn't have a Registrar of Voters. Maybe you should take MN election law 101

[robinlynne]

14. MInnesota has at least 20 Registrars of Voters. All states do.

. POllworkers do not make those decisions EVER (what ballots should be counted). period. not a maybe. not something that may or may not be true. fact. I took elections 101 my friend. and 102 and 103 even.

[Mnpaul]

17. Thats funny

I have watched every minute of the election trial and not one 'registrars of voters' was called to the stand. Decisions are made by absentee ballot boards or by workers at the polls if there is no absentee ballot board. If they are on the list of registered voters they are counted if they are not on the list and there is no included registration they are not. Some poll workers checked for witness registration, some did not.

203B.12 ELECTION JUDGES TO RECEIVE AND COUNT BALLOTS.
Subdivision 1.Receipt of return envelopes.The election judges in each precinct or the judges of an absentee ballot board shall take possession of all return envelopes delivered to them in accordance with section 203B.08.

Subd. 2.Examination of return envelopes.Two or more election judges shall examine each return envelope and shall mark it accepted or rejected in the manner provided in this subdivision. If a ballot has been prepared under section 204B.12, subdivision 2a, or 204B.41, the election judges shall not begin removing ballot envelopes from the return envelopes until 8:00 p.m. on election day, either in the polling place or at an absentee ballot board established under section 203B.13.

The election judges shall mark the return envelope "Accepted" and initial or sign the return envelope below the word "Accepted" if the election judges or a majority of them are satisfied that:

[robinlynne]

18. still not a pollworker....

[Mnpaul]

19. Sure they are

Election judges are poll workers. They do make decisions at the polls. You go into vote, the election judge looks you up on the roster. If you are listed you move to the next position and receive a ballot. If you are not registered they refer you to the person who does same day registrations. After the polls close the election judges process tthe absentee ballots.

[robinlynne]

21. The person who looks you up on the roster is called a roster clerk, a citizen

volunteer. The ballots are not processed at the polls. They are received at the polls and processed at the Registrar's office.

[Mnpaul]

23. ballots are processed at the polls

anyone watching the trial knows that.

[footinmouth]

12. This is NOT being decided by poll workers

It's being decided by a 3-judge Tribunal and they are making decisions based on existing Minnesota election laws. In the state of Minnesota, absentee voting is consider a privilege, not a right and there are a lot of rules that need to be followed. Both sides are arguing to have ballots opened that fall under those standards. I have been watching this thing every day at theuptake.org and it's going very slowly. From what I've seen so far, the Franken team seems far better prepared than the Coleman team.

[robinlynne]

15. Thank-you!

[bluestateguy]

4. It just won't end

That buck-toothed asshole will never concede.

[scarface2004]

5. i agree he is a bucktooth asshole!

as are all republikkkans!

[peacetalksforall]

6. What a surprise - Coleman's list is thought to favor Colemen - time to match their manuevers.

[digidigido]

7. I think Franken scares Repubs because he has something they lost years ago..... principles

[L. Coyote]

8. I'm taking bets. They called every one of those voters and know how most voted.

[No Elephants]

16. Good point. Someone here posted the other day that one of the ballots

Coleman is trying to include is her friend;s ballot and she knows for a fact this friend voted for Franken.

Franken's team is actually trying to win. I think Coleman's team is simply trying to stall.

[creeksneakers2]

9. They are smart to go this way

As long as there are votes out there that might be legal, the court is going to look at them, irregardless of what else has happened. How can a voter be told that his vote didn't count because of a mistake?

Franken is smart to get in his share of the ballots to keep Coleman from cherry picking a win for himself. Still, this throws it all up in the air again. It gives Coleman another chance to win.

[JI7]

10. do they still need money for the Legal Stuff ?

[clixtox]

20. Of course!

As a former California politician, Jesse Unruh, once famously said, "Money is the mother's milk of politics".

I imagine the Democratic Party is making sure that the Franken campaign gets every resource they need since the outcome is so crucial to having a Senate that will not be ham-strung by reThug obstructionists.